Signal-governing apparatus



APPLICATION FILED AN.19, 1922.

htented June 13, 1922.

[rule 1': Z0 7*, A. I. WOOdring,

ALBERTO I. WOODRING. OF WATERLOO, IOJVA, ASSIGNOR, BY IMESNE ASSIGNIVIENTfi,

T0 NATIONAL SAFETY DEVICES COMIPANY, OF WATERLOO, IOWA.

SIG-NAIhGQVERNING APPARATUS.

Specification 01' Letters Patent. Patented Jung 13, 1922,

Application filed January 19, 1922. Serial No. 530,315.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERTO I. VVooDmNG, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of ."Vaterloo, Blackhawk County, Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Signal-Governing Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in signal governing apparatus, and particularly to means for actuating a whistle or other signal upon a locomotive or the like with a predetermined number of different impulses according to the requirement of a designated code.

Une object of my improvements is to pro vide mechanism suitable to be actuated directly by means of a relay of fluid-pressure to thereby avoid muscular strain, reserving to the operator onlymeans for producing an initiatory setting action therein, resulting in the desired sequence of subsidiary actions.

Another object is to include means in the operating devices for the change or adjustment of tension and of speed of the moving parts, as requisite under different conditions of service.

Another object is to add means operative automatically to initiate the desired train of actions in operating the signal without attention of a special operator, while the apparatus is being translated with the vehicle relative to designated localities, such as while approaching a highway or other place.

Other objects will be more specifically described and pointed out hereafter in the following description and claims.

These objects have been successiull y accomplished by the means hereinafter described and claimed, and which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a front elevation of my improved signal governing device with parts broken away. Fig. 2 is a vertical medial cross section taken through the spring-barrel and the dash-pot, with other parts shown in elevation. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary end elevation of certain parts shown in said Fig. 2, and Fig. lis a fragmentary elevation of the opposite part of said spring-barrel from that shown in Figs. 2 and 3. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal horizontal section of the cylinder and moving parts therein for relaying fluid-pressure therein for positively actuating the signal. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal horizontal section of another cylinder with moving parts therein for relaying fluidpressure to operate the cam-bearing rockbody of the device.

This device embodies several improvements upon signal governing apparatus which are shown and claimed in my preceding applications for patents, Ser. Nos. $91,986 and 520,918.

Primarily, this apparatus is particularly designed for convenient functioning in operating a whistle signal on any vehicle such as a locomotive whether steam or electric, and which also transports some suitable source of fluid-pressure. The purpose is to not only relieve the engineer from responsibility of personally actuating the whistle signal with a desired number of actuations and intervals between actuations so that he may more easily keep his attentionv upon other necessary and simultaneous employment, but also to relay the proper amount of fluid pressure to effect the forcible operation of the signal without excessive muscular strain, leaving it necessary merely to manually initiate the desired train of actions by a single light power impulse.

Furthermore, the mechanism is so designed as to obviate any uncertainties or defects in the operation such as is incident to all hand operations, to thereby produce distinct, fully sustained, and properly timed actuations of the signal as also of the intervals between the actuation.

The numeral 1 denotes an ordinary steam sounded whistle such as is usually used on locomotives, although compressed air may be used for the purpose, and containing a valvechamber with a valve therein not shown, having a-projectino valve-stem 2 operated by a projection on a pivoted arm 8 to whose upper free end is connected a link 4:. l

The principal operating element of this device is a rock-body 19 secured upon one end of a rock-shaft 20 by means of a nut 25 and a locking pin 26, said rock-body being a disk of which a portion of the circumferential periphery is depressed leaving, however, a number of spaced cam-projections of different widths and separated by different widths of intervals. In the instance illustrated, one pair 23 and 2-1- of the projections are the same width but of greater width than the width of the other projections 21 and 22. This is to conform to the present 110 railroad signaling code wherein the signal for approaching a highway is given in intermittent blasts, that is, a blast of two seconds duration followed by another of two seconds durations after an interval of one second, the second blast being followed by a one second interval, with following two blasts of the whistle of one second duration each, separated by one second interval, a total of nine seconds in all.

The numeral 32 denotes a spring-barrel with a connected dash-pot 30, and the numerals 51 and 80 denote cylinders positioned horizontally above and below said springbarrel, all said devices being suspended from an elevated fixture 27 having a depending bearing socket within which a diminished part of a projection 28 is mounted for rocking adjustment and secured by a set-screw 29. The interior of the spring barrel 32 has a centrally orificed diaphragm or partition which seats the inner end of the rock-shaft 20, the latter having on said end a crank 35 provided with a pin and the latter connected by a pitman 36 to a piston 37 with ball-valve 37 within the clash-pot 30 which, when the shaft rocks, bears against oil contents of the dash-pot to produce a cushioning effect at each limit of the rocking-movements of the rock-body 19. 38 is a hand-wheel for turning a screw governing the flow through a bypass 38 leading from above the piston 37 to the bottom of the dash pot 30. The numeral 33 denotes a cylinder which is removably fitted in the barrel 32, and has a centrally orificed head 3 1 of greater exterior diameter than said barrel, and the circumferential edge of this head has gear-teeth.

Referring to said Fig. 41, the numeral 127 denotes a small -flat plate mounted upon one side of the barrel 32 by means of screws 125 traversing a longitudinal slot 126, and the outer end of said plate has a number of spaced longitudinally directed detents 128 fitting the interspaces of teeth on the head 3+1. A helical spring 31 is mounted within the cylinder 33 around the shaft .20 with its outer end secured to the cylinder and its inner end secured to said shaft. Said dentated plate 127 is employed in the adjustment of the tension of said spring, its teeth 128 being inserted between the teeth on the head 3 1 when the latter has been rocked sufliciently in a desired direction. When the screws 125 have been loosened, the slot 126 permits sliding of the plate 127 to detach its teeth from the head 34 during said process of adjustment.

The numeral 130 denotes a plate secured to the barrel 32 opposite said plate 127 by means'of screws 129, and this plate carries an integral horizontal arm 72, whose outer end is formed with an elongated orificed bearing part to receive a diminished. part of a short rock-shaft 71, one end of which has an upright arm with a flattened extremity.

On the other end of said shaft is fixedly secured the upper end of a depending arm 73 which has oil'setparts or stops 7 (3 at opposite sides of its lower extremity. The numeral 7 1 denotes a pair of parallel bars between whose ends adjacent the rock-body 19 is mounted an anti-friction roller 78 on pintles 77, said roller being positioned within the path of movement oi: said projections 21 to inclusive. The opposite. ends of said bars are pivotally mounted upon opposite sides 01 the arm 73 on pintles 75, and these ends 01 said bars have curved parts above and adapted to ride upon the stop parts 76.

Referring to Fig. 6, the cylinder 80 contains a reciprocatory imperl orate piston mounted upon the rod 86 which projects from one head thereof, and a coiled spring 87 is mounted within said cylinder and engaged between the piston and the head of the cylinder around said rod 86. Said rod 86 is of rectangular cross section and on its outwardly projecting end 15 a rectangular sleeve is secured adjustably by means of a set-screw 16. On the opposite side from said screw said sleeve is provided with a projectin boss having a diminished cylindric pint e 13 passed through a bearing oritice in one end ot a connecting-rod 12. The other end of said rod has a pintle 11 mounted loosely in a bearing opening in the rockbody 19 and secured thereto by a nut. In the body of the cylinder 80 is formed a longitudinal passage 81 communicating with the interior of the cylinder at one end by way of an opening 83, and the area of the latter is controlled by means 01" a screw 8-1 to adjustably vary the amount o1 entering air under pressure. The other end of the passage 81 communicates through a port 82 and by way of an elbow-coupling 88 and short pipe 89 with the upper part of a valve chamber 90 containing a two-way checkvalve, and at one side of said chamber a short pipe 91 includes an operating valve 112 having a valve-rocking handle 111. The pipe 91 leads by way of a coupling 116 to a pipe 117 leading to a source of fluid-pressure supply, such as compressed air not shown. VVitltin the chamber 112 is mounted athreeway plug-valve for effecting or cutting off communication between the two-way checkvalve 90 and said air supply. The chamber 112 has an exhaust-port 113 which may register with one opening of the passages through the three-way valve, when the handle 111 is rocked to cause the valve to close the communication between the valve chamber 90 and pipe 117, serving to exhaust compressed air from the cylinder 80.

The upper cylinder 51 is constructed of two alined connected parts separated by an orificed diaphragm containing a removable threaded centrally oriticed plug-bearing for a diminished part of a squared piston-rod 9, said rod carrying an imperforate piston 65 within and fitting the left-hand part of the cylinder. A coiled spring 66 is mounted in this part of the cylinder around the rod 9 and engaged between the outer end of the cylinder and said piston. The right-hand end of the cylinder is divided into two compartments by means of a centrally orificed partition 59 and 56, the said orifice therein numbered 60 being larger in diameter than a received part of a valve-rod 57. Within the chamber next to the right of the partition 6% a valve-head 61 is secured on the rod 57, and a short coiled spring 62 is mounted in a socket sleeve projecting from the plug in the partition 64 and is engaged between said socket and said valve-head. WVithin the compartment at the right of the parti tion 59 is positioned a hollow rod 541 alined with the convex end of the rod 57, and said rod 54- traverses a bearing opening in the right cylinder-head and has a port 55 therein leading from its hollow to the atmosphere, and the inner end of the rod 5 1 is cupped to fit the convex end of the rod 57. The outwardly projecting extremity of the rod 5% is threaded to receive a socketed hard steel head 52 whose outer curved end is contacted by the flattened extremity of the arm 70. Said head 52 may be adjustably secured by means of a set-screw 53 to properly position it on the rod 541 or take up for wear. numeral 63 denotes a by-pass in the cylinder 51 between and traversing the partitions 59 and 64. An orificed coupling member 123, having an adjusting-screw 12 1 to vary the area of its passage, delivers compressed air into the compartment containing the Valvehead 61, and communicates with the airsup ply pipe 117 by means of a communicating pipe 122, coupling 121, pipe 120, coupling 119, pipe 118, and coupling 116.

Referring to Fig. 1, I have shown herein means for automatically actuating the apparatus at desired positions, such as the vicinity of highways, when it is desired to relieve the engineer entirely of the responsibility of actuating said whistle signal when approaching said highways. The numeral 96 denotes a valve chamber containing a check-valve 92, the latter having a channeled stem projecting at 97 from the chamber downwardly. This chamber 96 eifects occasional communication between a conduit consisting of a coupling 95, pipe 94, coupling 93, pipe 110, coupling 114E, pipe 115, and coupling 116 to supply-pipe 117. Another conduit communicates between the chamber 96 and the other side of said chamber 90 by means of the coupling 98, pipe 99, coupling 100, and pipe 101.

A bracket support 102 below the chamber 96 has a spring barrel 103, and a. plunger-rod 106 has a plunger 105 fixed thereon both The seated in the barrel 103, and a coiled spring 104; is mounted about said rod 106 and engaged between the orificed upper end of the barrel and said plunger-head. Said rod 106 is alined with the valve-stem 97 vertically, and the lower end of the rod is forked to seat an anti-friction roller 107. The numeral 108 denotes part of an inclined-end block supported on cross-ties 109 within the path of forward translation of the roller 107.

Both the toothed head 3st and said rockbody 19 are loosely mounted on the rockshaft 20, but the head 341- is, as already described, retained in an adjusted position fixedly by means of the dentated plate 127. The rock-body 19 is connected fixedly, yet adjustably, to said rock-shaft by the following described means:

Referring to said Fig. 1, the numeral 17 denotes a disk fixedly mounted upon the outer end of said rock-shaft and its circumferential edge is partially dentated at 18. A plate 39 is secured to the rock-body 19 by means of screws 41-9 and when the screws are removed, end-teeth 50 on said plate may be meshed adjustably with any of the teeth on the disk 47. justable connection of the rock-body 19 to the rock-shaft has the result of correspondingly varying the length of reciprocation oi": the piston 85 and cylinder or in fact, varies the distance through which the roclrbody rocks. When such distance is shortened, for instance, the rock-body moves at greater speed so that the impulses produced by the projections 21 to 24 inclusive upon the contact device 73-74: are shorter pro ducing relative shortening of the whistle blasts.

To operate the device, the operator rocks the handle 111 forward and back, such for Ward movement placing the valve in the chamber 112 to effect communication from the supply pipe 117 to the chamber 90 while cutting ofl the exhaust opening 113. Air under pressure is thus passed through the check-valve chamber 90 shifting the valve therein and then passing into the cylinder 80 through the passage 81 to force the piston 85 a stroke to the right. This compresses the spring 87 while simultaneously the connecting rod 4-2 rocks the rock-body 19 upwardly to the right causing the projections thereon to successively lift and pass by the swinging arm 74 of the contact device without rocking the depending arm 73. As the arm 111 is rocked back by the operator communication between the pipe 117 and the chamber 90 is cut off, and the passage in the valve placed in registration with the exhaust-port 113 in the chamber 112 whereby the compressed air in the cylinder and the pipes leading thereinto is exhausted through said port. As in the rocking of the rockbody 19 upwardly the spring 31 becomes It will be seen that this ad- 1 Cii Cir

placed under tension, when. air pressure is released, the spring reacts and said rocle body is rocked back to its initial position causing its projections 21 to 2 1 inclusive to successively engage the roller 78 and pushing down the arm 7 1 whose engagement with the stop 76 rocks the depending arm 78. Simultaneously the upright arm 70 presses upon the contact-head 52 thrusting the alined contacting rods 54 and 9 to the left compressing the interior spring 62 while the piston 65 compresses the other spring 66 in moving toward the left. Air-pressure is relayed into the cylinder 51 as follows:

l i hen the rod 5a is pushed in by the arm '10, the port 55 becomes closed, and the rod 5d engages the end of the rod 57, closing the hollow of said rod 5 1- while the valve 61 opens the port 60, and as the air pressure in the conduit 123 is constant, the air in the middle chamber in communication therewith passes through the port and the bypass 63 into the left-hand portion of the cylinder forcibly pushing the piston 65 and its red 9 with the connecting-rod 1 to rock the lever 3 and sound the whistle.

At each interval of said actuations when the contact-arms 7a are released the rod 5% is pushed outwardly by the compressed air to the left of it, the cylinder-spring 69 reacts to return. said piston 65 closing the valve 61, the air exhausting from the cylinder by way of the by-pass 63 and rod-passage 55 to the atmosphere. The action of this device causes each blast of the whistle to begin and terminate quickly, while the blast is throughout from beginning to end maintained steadily and unvaryingly without tremors or increasing and decreasing volume as normally the case when a whistle signal is merely manually operated.

lVhere entirely automatic actuation of the signal is desired and the additional equipment shown in Fig. 1 is coml'iined'with the other equipment, the engineers operating valve is kept closed. The check-valve 92 in the chamber 96 is normally kept on its seat by air-pressure thereabovc and by a small coiled sprin engaging it. The valve is lifted by the means hereinbefore described when. the roller 107 passes over and is shifted upwardly by the block 108, allowing passage of the compressed air into the pipes 99 and 101 leading tothe right-hand end of the valve-chamber to shift the two-way check-valve therein to pass the air into the cylinder 80, operating its piston 85 in the method heretofore given. As the depending stem 97 of the valve 92 has a longitudinal passage which opens through the side into the lower compartment of the valve-cham ber 96, this passage being of relatively small size, when the valve 92 again closes said passage serves to exhaust the air from the cylinder 80.

neiaasa lVhile the engineers valve-chamber 112 is positioned as shown for manual operation, it is obvious that a similar valve may be used for pedal operation at another location by including it in another line of piping serving as a bypass. This will render the operation convenient under all circumstances.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a signal governing apparatus, a signaling device having a movable operating element, a rock-body having projections, a contact-device connected operatively to said operating element and actuated by the pro jections on said rock-body with step-by-step movements to operate the signaling device with certain durations of actions separated by certain durations of intervals, a motor for occasional actuations by the admission thereinto of a fluid under pressure and ad justable connections between said'motor and said i-oclr-bocly for varying the speed of movement of said rock-body to vary the durations of said actions and intervals of actions of the signaling-device.

2. In a signal governing apparatus, a sig naling device having a movable operating element, a body having spaced projections, a resilient element connected to said body yieldingly to return it when moved in one direction and then released, means for vary-' ing the degree of tension of said resilient element, and a contact-device connected operatively to the operating element of said signal, to be engaged with and moved by said projections to operate the signal with intermittent action only while the said body is reactively moving back by impulsion of said resilient element after being positively moved in one direction and then released.

In a signal governing apparatus, a signaling device having a movable operating element, a resiliently-controlled rockbody having a nui'nber of spaced circumferential cam-detents, a contact-device having a stop and a pivoted linger part positioned in. the path of movement of said cam-detents to be shifted idly thereby while the rockbody is rocking in one direction and to be engaged by said detents and stop to oscillate the contact-device when the rock-body is rocked in a reverse direction, operative connect-ions between said contact-device and the operating element of said signal, fluid-pressure controlled means connected to said reckbody, and means operable to initiate and terminate the action of the fluid-pressure controlled means.

4t. In a signal governing apparatus, a signaling device having a movable operating element, a resiliently-controlled rock-body having a number of spaced circumferential cam-detents, a contact-device having a stop and a pivoted finger part positioned in the path of movement of said cam-detents to be shifted idly thereby while the rock-body is rocking in one direction and to be engaged by said detents and stop to oscillate the contact-device when the rock-body is rocked in a reverse direction, operative connections between said contact-device and the operating element of said signal, fluid-pressure controlled means including a yieldable resilient react-ion element connected to said rock-body, and means operable to initiate and terminate the action of the fluidpressure controlled means.

5. In a signal governing apparatus, a signaling device having a movable operating element, a resiliently-controlled rock-body having a number of spaced circumferential cam-detents, means for varying the speed of movement of said rock-body, a contact-device having a stop and a pivoted finger part positioned in the path of movement or said cam-detents to be shifted idly thereby while the rock-body is rocking in one direction and to be engaged by said detents and stop to oscillate the contact-device when the rockbody is rocked in a reverse direction, operative connections between said contact-device and the operating element of said signal, fluid-pressure controlled means including a yieldable resilient reaction element connected to said rock-body, and means operable to initiate and terminate the action of the fluid-pressure controlled means.

6. In a signal-governing apparatus, a signaling device having a movable operating element, a resiliently-controlled rock-body having a number of spaced circumferential cam-detents, means for varying the degree of tension of the resiliently-controlled rockbody, other means for varying the speed of rotation of said rock-body, a contact-device having a stop and a pivoted finger part positioned in the path of movement of said camdetents to be shifted idly thereby while the rook-body is rocking in one direction and to be engaged by said detents and stop to oscillate the contact-device when the rockbody is rocked in a reverse direction, operative connections between said contact-device and the operating element of said signal, fluid-pressure controlled means including a yieldable resilient reaction element connected to said rock-body, and means operable to initiate and terminate the action of the fluidpressure controlled means.

7. In a signal governing apparatus, a signaling device having a movable operating element, a resiliently-controlled rock-body having a number of spaced circumferential camdetents, a contact-device having a stop and a pivoted finger part positioned in the path of movement of said cam-detents to be shifted idly thereby while the rock-body is rockin in one direction and to be engaged by said detents and stop to oscillate the con tact-device when the rock-body is rocked in a reverse direction, operative connections between said contact-device and the operating element of said signal, fluid-pressure controlled means connected to said rock-body, and means operable to initiate and terminate the action of the fluid-pressure controlled means, including a valve-chamber containing a check-valve having a projecting valvestem, and a resiliently-controlled movable contact-device propellable to open said checlr'valve and to react when released to allow the check-valve to close.

8. In a device of the character described, the combination with a signaling-device, of

a resiliently controlled rocking element having a number of different length and dili'en ently spaced cam projections, a jointed contact-device adapted to be operatively engaged and oscillated by said projections only while the rocking element is moved in one direction, operative connections between said contact-device and said signaling-device including a relay-device for receiving and communicating fluid-pressure to operate the signaling-device with intermittent impulses like impulses given by said projections to the contactdevice, and a fluid-pressure device operatively connected to said rocking element to tensionally rock it in one direction, and including a valve-chamber and a controller-valve therein for communication with a source of fluid pressure, said chamber and valve having exhaustpassages for registration when the valve is closed.

Signed at aterloo, Iowa, this 16th day of J an. 1922.

ALBERTO I. WVOODRING. 

